


The Best Year Ever

by Izusatsou



Category: Free!
Genre: Beautiful mermaid Haru, Costume Party, First Kiss, Future fish costumes, Haru needs help with his make-up, Love, M/M, New Year's Eve, Rin's a smooth dancer, Rin/Haru/Mako are at least third years or home on break from college, Romantic Fluff, Sensual yet nervous cop Rin, There’s other unmentioned guests at the party- use your imagination, gay affirming, the gang supports them
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-02
Updated: 2021-01-16
Packaged: 2021-03-10 21:33:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,923
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28493928
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Izusatsou/pseuds/Izusatsou
Summary: Nagisa throws a New Year's Eve costume party at Haru's house. Everyone wears their "future fish" costumes, including Haru in all his mermaid glory.At some point during the night, Haru needs help with his make-up. *wink wink*Chapter 2 is my fanart to go with my fanfic!Enjoy! And Happy New Year!!
Relationships: Matsuoka Rin & Nanase Haruka, Matsuoka Rin/Nanase Haruka
Comments: 10
Kudos: 29





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I had the idea of this fic just a day ago and randomly started writing on New Year's Eve. I've learned with myself that when I'm in the mood to be creative I have to do it then and there, or it just won't get done! Anyone else like that? Anyways, here we are. If someone knows of a fanfic costume party like this, please let me know! I couldn't find one, so once again I wrote the story. I guess I'm learning the point to this fanfic business, lol. I'm a newbie to fanfic and anime in general, so please read with much grace :D

_ Did I seriously agree to this? _

This is the thought that runs through Haru’s mind as he looks down at his bare torso and fish tail. 

Maybe it’s ok.  _ At least I get to be a mermaid. _

Nagisa wanted to have a costume themed New Year’s Eve party, and Haru agreed to have it at his place. Oftentimes gatherings end up at his house- they could be as loud and obnoxious as they wanted. No parents or siblings- just the usual gang and whatever music, food, games and chaotic mess they wanted.

An interesting mix of pop and punk, pizza and strawberry flavored snacks, Nagisa definitely had a gift of entertaining- grabbing whoever he could to dance with him throughout the night. Much to his delight Rei had a few calculated robotic moves when a pop/electro song played. He looked way too cool dancing in his scientist costume as well, holding his drink in a beaker container.

Even Rin was impressed. “Wow, Rei!? Look at you!” He was standing next to him, trying to mimic Rei’s dance moves. He chuckled nervously- he was sure he wouldn’t grasp the precision of the mechanical moves, try as he may. Regardless, Rin was in a playful mood and opted to have a good time tonight. 

At times they fought over the music- but everyone got a turn to play what they wanted. Whenever Rin plays a song everyone ends up dancing to his music. He had put together quite the mix, including some really great artists from his time in Australia. 

“Hey Rin, I like this song! It’s pretty,” Nagisa smiles, referring to the next song Rin is playing. The blonde “astronaut” slowly waves his hands in the air responding to the ethereal sounds around him. 

“Heh, you like it?” Rin is dancing as well- albeit a simple and cool motion that involves jerking his chest and shoulders softly to the beat. Occasionally he turns to face away from everyone, escaping to his own little world as he gets lost in the ambiance of the sounds and party lights.

Meanwhile Makoto and Haru refill their drinks in the kitchen. They enter the “dance floor”, finding whatever small space they could to display their own quirky little moves. 

After a few moments of chatting and dancing with Makoto, Haru looks over at Rin- still off in his own little dance world, facing away from everyone. He was wearing a police officer costume which Haru found pretty funny at first glance. But now-  _ now _ he was moving smooth and cool to an ambient song that filled the room with a sensual beauty. 

Not even aware it was happening, Haru finds his mouth gaping the slightest bit in response to Rin’s private little dance show. He can’t deny that he already finds himself attracted to Rin, but this…

_ and in that cop costume… _

Before Haru can snap out of his stare, Rin turns back towards everyone and sees that he and Makoto are now in the room. Rin’s eyes widened, excited to see them  _ actually  _ dancing- barely...but at least there was some movement. His eyes linger a bit on Haru and he smiles-  _ is he even having a good time?  _ He giggles at the sight anyways, Haru in his shimmery blue mermaid tail and Makoto in a firefighter costume. Makoto notices Haru’s zoning out on something and turns his gaze to find him staring at Rin. He grins as Rin walks over, maintaining a beat to his step.

“Rin, is this your song?” Makoto asks Rin as he bops to the beat.

“Yeah! It’s pretty great, huh? Not too crazy, but I love the sounds. There’s something about the bass too- gets me moving,” he continues to dance but tones down his moves as his song comes to an end. 

“Glad to see you can keep a beat too, Haru,” he grins at Haru, glancing down at his mermaid tail then back up, “especially in that.” 

“I don’t need that much space to dance. I’m fine in this.” He realizes he’s still holding a drink and gulps down the rest to quench his thirst. 

It was warm with all the bodies moving within a small space. Beads of sweat were appearing on foreheads but everyone was having a good time and didn’t seem to mind.

“I’m gonna get another slice of pizza,” Makoto smiles playfully, but it almost sounds like an excuse to leave Rin and Haru to themselves.

“It’s very ‘Haru’ ya know. Your costume. At least you’re probably not as hot as the rest of us, only having to wear that,” Rin gestures at Haru’s bottom half.

Haru looks down at his torso, pleased with how his look had turned out. He had found some shimmery makeup and added an effect of fish scales here and there over his body. He noticed he was slightly glistening with sweat but it wasn’t so much that it ruined the makeup. 

“Still a little warm, but not too bad. Are you hot in that?” Haru nods at Rin’s uniform, staring at his chest. There was an extra button undone, revealing the shadow between his pecs. 

“Uh...it’s ok. The price you pay to look cool, I guess.” Rin’s cheeks flush slightly as a bead of sweat falls down the side of his face.

“You looked cool dancing. Do you like to dance?”

More blood rushes to his cheeks as Rin lets out a soft laughter. He glances off to the side, the slightest bit embarrassed. “Uh, yeah actually I do. I don’t dance often but if the mood strikes, it’s fun, ya know? Music and movement combined are a great stress reliever.” 

Rin glances back at Haru as if to look for...approval? Did Haru like dancing? 

_ Did I sound like a total cheeseball?  _

Haru made Rin question himself sometimes. It might be because there was the slightest attraction he felt towards him. And Haru in a mermaid costume was only encouraging these feelings even more tonight. 

Thankfully Haru’s lips curl into a small smile, soft eyes gazing at him in admiration.

_ Whoa. _

Just then Nagisa hops over and places an arm around Haru and Rin. “Hey Rin, got any more cool songs?” Haru looks at where Nagisa placed his hand, right where he’d put some of his shimmery make-up scales. Nagisa notices Haru looking at his shoulder and lifts his arm. 

“Oh Haru, sorry ‘bout that. Can it be fixed?”

“It’s no big deal. Easy fix.” Haru puts a reassuring hand on Nagisa’s shoulder and walks off to the bathroom.

Rin watches Haru as he walks away and chuckles, “You know he’s gotta have those scales  _ perfect _ .”

“Of course! He’s Haru and he’s gotta work that mermaid costume beautifully. It really does look amazing, don’t ya think?”

Rin looks at Nagisa and hesitates for a moment.  _ Agreeing that Haru looks amazing… _

_...don’t look too into it. _

“Yeah, he looks...good.” His cheeks feel a bit warm and he forgets how to look normal. 

_ Ah crap. _

Nagisa gives Rin a curious smirk. “...yeah, so how ‘bout another song Rin?” Meanwhile, someone else had already started playing a song, beating him to it.

“Yeah sure, give me a minute.” Rin pulls out his phone to look through his music.

“Hey Nagisa! What’s this?” Rei is in the kitchen looking at a strawberry flavored  _ something _ but he’s not sure what it is. He’d rather not die- better ask the host.

“Oh! Hey Rin, I’ll be right back.” Nagisa jogs over to the kitchen.

Rin realizes Haru has been gone for a while and walks down the hall to the bathroom. He puts his phone away and as he enters he finds Haru trying to hold some kind of fishnet piece of fabric on his shoulder. His eyebrows are furrowed in frustration.

“Need help?” 

Haru looks up at Rin, then off to the side, trying to hide his annoyance. 

He’s the cutest, saddest mermaid one could ever lay their eyes on. Rin raises his hand to cover his mouth as if to hide the sound of a slight chuckle.

Haru shoots him an icy glare and looks back at his shoulder. 

“It’s the scales. I can’t hold the fabric down, it’s being stupid. It wasn’t doing this earlier.”

Rin comes into the bathroom, closing the door for more room. Not really sure how he can help, his body begins to tense up as he moves closer to Haru to get a better look at the problem area.  _ Such a tight space with only Haru.  _ He takes a deep breath and sighs, trying again (for the second time tonight) to come across not awkward but probably failing.

_ Shake it off, Rin. _

“How do you do this- just place the fabric down and put the make-up over it?”

Haru looks at Rin, slightly surprised. 

Rin wants to help him but he’s so close and it’s making Haru feel a heat rise to his face. He turns his head, trying to ignore the tension and focusing on the matter at hand. After a short pause he turns his gaze to the shimmery make-up. 

“Yeah. If I hold the fabric down, you can put the shimmer over it. Then when I lift the fabric it’ll look like scales. See, watch this.”

Haru places the fabric on his shoulder and holds it down on the edges with both his hands. Haru gestures towards the make-up and Rin grabs the make-up tool and taps it into the container, coating it with shimmer. He moves closer to Haru and starts to gently blot at the fabric covered area. Haru lets him cover it with make-up until he’s satisfied.

“Ok, that’s good.” Haru gently lifts the fabric and blue tinted shimmery scales appear on his shoulder. 

“Heh, that’s pretty cool,” Rin says, pleased with how well the scales turned out. He backs up a bit, looking over the other scaly splotches spread randomly over his body. 

“The rest of the scales still look good.” 

Then he eyes his jawline and thinks Haru would look even better if he had scales climbing up his face…

“What? Is there something on my face?” Haru looks in the mirror and moves his head to the side, eyeing the area Rin was staring at.

“No, I was thinking it might look cool if you had scales climbing a little over your jaw and up your cheek a bit.” He’s looking at Haru’s reflection in the mirror, grinning at him and hoping he likes the idea as well.

“Yeah that does sound cool. Will you help me again?” He turns to face Rin, fabric ready in his hand.

“No, Haru, I’m just gonna leave you to your own devices, tch.” He smirks and starts adding more shimmer to the make-up tool.

Rin moves close to Haru again and motions him to turn his head to the side. “Yeah, that’s good.” Haru places the fabric along his jawline, quickly turning to check the placement in the mirror, then back to Rin with his head slightly turned to his right. Rin lifts his hand to dab some shimmer onto the fabric. 

“Thanks for doing this. You probably weren’t planning on being a make-up artist tonight, as well as a cop.” Haru continues to hold his head still while Rin blots more shimmer onto the make-up brush. 

Rin looks up at Haru’s jaw and cocks his head to the side. “It’s ok. I don’t mind.” He’s focused on his work, his brows furrowed a bit with intensity as he figures out what to do next. “Lift it a little higher so I can put some scales climbing up the side here.” He nods towards the mirror and Haru turns to re-adjust the fabric on the side of his face. He turns back to Rin and moves his head to the side again. 

“Is this ok?” He asks Rin if his head is in a good position. 

“Yeah, good. Actually you can let this hand go. I’m gonna have to hold this where I want it. It’ll be easier this way.”

Haru lowers his right hand and grins a little in amusement as Rin stretches the fabric just a tad before blotting more shimmer on his skin.

_ He’s really into this.  _

While Rin adds more, Haru allows his eyes to wander over to Rin, keeping his head still and turned to the side. He notices the area from earlier; the place where it seems his shirt unbuttoned one button too many (or was it intentional?). Either way, it’s part of a chest he’s seen repeatedly from swimming but for some reason the shadow revealing sculpted pecs was drawing Haru’s attention with overwhelming curiosity. 

The thing about Haru is that he usually doesn’t pause to think about an action- he just does it. It’s the part of feeling “free” that he owns up to, not letting fear of embarrassment control him. 

Just as Rin is adding some final touches of shimmer, Haru places his finger exactly on the spot he’d been eyeing on his chest. 

“It’s open..kinda low.” 

Rin lifts the make-up brush just as Haru touches him, having finished the fish scales. His heart rate increases a few notches and he stares down at Haru’s finger against his skin. 

“Oh...yeah, I hadn’t really noticed. Heh, I guess it is.” He lifts his gaze to Haru’s and opens his mouth slightly to say something but nothing comes out. 

There’s a tension filled pause as Rin stares at Haru, eyes filled with uncertainty. His chest rises and falls- Haru’s finger remains glued to his skin. 

“Uh…,” Rin pauses briefly then adds, “I guess I’ll button it?” He takes the fabric off Haru’s face and sets it and the make-up tool down to button the gap in his shirt, but Haru cuts him off.

“No, don’t. I like it.” He glances back at his finger still poking Rin’s chest. “I like this costume.” 

He slowly removes his finger and turns his head an inch to the left, soft eyes slowly moving to Rin’s bicep peeking out from his sleeve. He takes his left hand and gently grabs his arm, thumb grazing right on the peak of the rounded muscle. 

_ Please let this be ok. _

It was warm and smooth to the touch. Haru felt a pleasurable sensation throughout his body in response. 

Rin remains motionless, his body heat rising as he observes Haru touching his muscle. A trickle of sweat streaks down his face.

Haru’s gaze meets Rin’s, his blue eyes glazed over a bit from longing and nervousness. Rin’s insides burst in a flurry of butterflies. 

_ What? _

_ What, Haru?!! _

Rin isn’t sure he meant to think the thought or say it out loud, but he didn’t have to wait much longer.

“You look really good, Rin.” He squeezes his bicep and takes a deep breath, exhaling louder than normal.

“...So good I can’t keep my hands to myself.” He lowers his gaze down, embarrassed from his words. “Is that ok…?”

Rin takes a moment before responding, but he’s not sure what to say. He’s thrilled but doesn’t want to ruin the moment. Though he thinks it’s pretty obvious he’s enjoying Haru’s touch by the flush in his cheeks, the loud thumping in his chest (at least it  _ seems  _ loud enough to be heard), and his heavier than normal breathing.

“Haru,...I…” Rin’s brows lift and his lips curl into a smile and he searches his heart for what to say. “I think you look really good too. I- crap...I’m nervous.” He lets out a breathy chuckle. 

Haru raises his eyes back up to meet Rin’s, and a small grin slowly grows as his heart starts thumping with anticipation.

“Rin, I  _ like  _ you.” He wraps his right hand around his other arm and squeezes both biceps at the same time, pulling himself a little closer.

_ What. _

_ Wait. _

_ What?! _

He holds still while Haru looks at him with intense blue eyes. An incredible rush of excitement flows through his body. 

“Haru-”

That’s all he’s able to say before Haru inches close enough to press his lips against his in a soft, lingering kiss.

Haru pulls away slowly, eyes gently opening from being closed. Rin’s eyelids lift as well, and both of their eyes open half way, lightheaded from such a physically intimate moment. Then Rin furrows his brows and a look of exhaustion and...sadness(?) appears as he quietly begins to speak. Just before he does, he holds Haru’s elbows- his hands are still on Rin’s arms. He takes a deep breath and exhales slowly. 

“Haru, I like you so freakin’ much.” He laughs quietly in disbelief to the moment. 

“You’re…” Rin breathes in deep and exhales long and slow before continuing.

“You are so beautiful Haru! And if you didn’t have all this shimmery make-up all over you, I’d hold you in my arms right now!” 

Haru looks down at his torso, then lower at the top of his fishtail. 

“Well, then...hold me here,” and he grabs Rin’s hands and places them on his hips. 

_ Oh. _

Rin chuckles.

Haru really didn’t want to mess up his make-up, now that Rin had helped him put some of it on him. He wanted to keep Rin’s work on his skin as long as he could.  _ Speaking of which… _

Haru turns around to face the mirror, mouth gaping a little as he looks at the shimmery scales climbing from just below his jaw line, leaving a trail up to his cheek. Rin’s hands stay on his hips as he shifts to look in the mirror.

“Rin…” A feeling of warmth flows through his body as he turns around to face Rin, eyes slightly widened in response to the beautiful artwork Rin created on him.

“It’s...I love it.” He grabs a hold of Rin’s hands, still on his hips. He squeezes his hands as if asking for something-   
_  
a kiss?_-Rin isn’t sure, but he pulls him towards his body anyways, careful not to press against his skin. He didn’t want to ruin any of the make-up either, because honestly, Haru did look amazing. He kisses him softly on the lips, pulls away slightly then goes in for another kiss, lingering a bit before pulling back. 

__

Rin glances downward. He seriously can’t believe this is happening.  _ God this stupid grin.  _ He had to restrain himself- if he could, he’d be fist punching in the air and yelling at the top of his flippin’ lungs. 

__

_ Haruka Nanase likes me! Like, really, really likes me! _

__

_ Holy crap!! _

__

He looks up. He really can’t hold it in. But he knows how to share some of this joy with some individuals not very far away.

__

“Haru...I’m...I’ve liked you for  _ kind of  _ a while now. I feel like I’ve been hiding this for  _ soooo long _ .”

__

Haru takes his hands off Rin’s hands (still on his waist) and lifts them up to his head. His eyes look at his red hair and lifts his cop costume cap off his head, letting it fall to the floor. He fondles his fingers through the strands, combing his fingers through his hair. 

__

_ Beautiful dark red hair, hiding all night… _

__

As Haru runs his fingers through Rin’s silky crimson streaks, he realizes he’s felt the same. He can’t deny it, there are years of longing within him as well…

__

He’s liked swimming and competing for sure, but there’s always been this tension...this curiosity. 

__

Was it like? Was it love?

__

_ Am I gay? _

__

_ Why didn’t I just like Rin as a friend? _

__

But that’s the thing with love. Love isn’t bound by genders. Love happens and the force is more powerful than anything. Love takes your face in its hands and looks you in the eye and says “I love you as you are. Don’t hide anything. You are perfect. I love  _ all  _ of you.”

__

But that was love, and this is Haru. He ponders the moment, searching for something to say to Rin.

__

“Don’t hide any longer, Rin.” He's holding the sides of Rin’s face in his hands. He didn’t even realize it but his hands somehow made their way down to his face at some point.

__

Rin smiles wide and gasps in response. He grabs one of Haru’s hands. 

__

“Come on Haru. Let’s do this.” He opens the bathroom door and leads them slowly down the hall. 

__

They approach the dance floor.

__

Nagisa was showing Rei a fun little dance move when he notices Rin and Haru in the room. 

__

“Nagisa, that looked pretty impressive!” Rin smiles at him, waiting for him to continue. 

__

“Yeah, we’ve been sharing moves for a while now. Where were you..,” and his voice trails off as he looks down at their hands, holding each other’s. His mouth stays open mid speech as he looks up at them- he isn't sure how to react but can’t resist the smile spreading across his lips. 

__

“Uh...yeah...Nagisa, Rei…,” Rin looks around for the others and quietly gathers everyone over eventually. 

__

“So I guess I…” Rin pauses and glances at Haru, the mermaid squeezing his hand tightly before Rin continues, looking around the room at all their friends, “...um, ** _we_** have an announcement that we’d like to share with all of you.”

__

Rin looks at Haru and pauses before continuing. 

__

“So the thing is...Haru and I confessed that we had feelings for each other. And we...well we kissed and...and I’ve really liked Haru for a long time and I don’t want to hide it anymore.” 

__

_ There. I said some things.  _

__

_ They’ll accept it, right? _

__

There was a short, not  _ too  _ uncomfortable silence. 

__

Surprisingly, Makoto walks over to them and smiles. “Guys, I’m happy for you. Rin, please don’t feel like you have to hide. I love you guys, your friendship means the world to me and I’m here to be your friend through everything.” He wraps his arms around Rin and Haru. They grasp him in return. 

__

“Thanks Makoto. You’re awesome!” Rin says into Makoto’s hair, as the others come up to them and share their support. 

__

“Rin, you can’t assume no one saw this coming.” Nagisa lays a hand on his shoulder as Makoto walks to the side. 

__

Rin and Haru look at him with surprise. 

__

“No really! It was so cute. At least I could see something happening between you too.” Nagisa looks at Rin, then at Haru. His eyes were sparkling and he was smiling like a goofball. A goofball in love with love, at that. 

__

He glances around the room. 

__

“I saw it,” said Makoto, winking at Nagisa. 

__

“Saw what?” Haru looked at Makoto, confused at his comment. 

__

“Haru, you can’t hide this either. You stare and gape at each other like you’ve discovered some kind of lost treasure!....or something like that.” His ears begin to tinge with pink as he nervously chuckles. 

__

“Huh, I guess that’s one way it feels like.” Rin glances at Haru, grinning as he remains holding his hand. 

__

“One way it feels like?” Haru looks at Rin, eyes widened with interest. 

__

“I think the ‘it’ they’re referring to is love.” Rin’s cheeks blush and he winks at Nagisa and Makoto.  _ Thanks guys.  _

__

Haru looks at Rin, eyes open wide as he tries to process the words that were being exchanged. 

__

_ Love.  _

__

_ Is this love? _

__

“Rin?” Haru looks at Rin as if to ask if it was in fact, love.

__

But Rin doesn’t say a word, grinning as he pulls out his phone to play a song. It’s slow and pretty like the last song he played. He has a couple of these songs saved on his phone. 

__

Well, maybe a lot of these songs. He was a romantic, after all. 

__

He grabs both of Haru’s hands and walks backwards, guiding them onto the dance floor. 

__

Rin takes his hands and weaves them into Haru’s hair, strands of silky black onyx falling softly over his fingers. 

__

Haru closes his eyes and tilts his head back slightly in response to Rin’s fingers in his hair. He brings his hands to Rin’s waist and straightens his head to gaze into Rin’s eyes. His eyelids are lowered as he comes closer to Rin. He stays at a distance, following Rin’s body to the beat of the music. Rin’s eyes are soft as he traces his fingers down the back of Haru’s head, down his neck and landing his hands on the lowest part of the back of his shoulders. 

__

Rin chuckles softly as he pulls Haru closer to him. 

__

“I’m really trying not to mess up the make-up.”

__

Haru gazes lovingly into Rin’s eyes and rolls his shoulders up and around, rubbing hard against Rin’s hands. 

__

“Just...hold me. Forget about the make-up.”

__

_ Haru...dang it. I think I really do love you.  _

__

Rin comes close to Haru’s ear. “I wanna hold you but not here. Can we go somewhere more private?” 

__

Haru pulls back and looks Rin in the eyes. 

__

“Yeah,” he says, a soft smile spreading across his lips. 

__

Haru takes Rin’s hand and begins to walk off the dance floor, pausing to whisper something into Makoto’s ear. 

__

Makoto nods and glances at Rin and back at Haru. He grins and places a hand on Rin’s back as he tells them again how happy he is for them. Then adds, “You guys get some sleep. I’ll keep an eye on everything out here. And make sure everyone gets to sleep at a reasonable time.” He shrugs, knowing it’ll be inevitable that a few of them will stay up well into daylight. As long as they weren’t too loud, he knew it was just his friends having a good time as they enjoy themselves at Nagisa’s party. 

__

Haru enters his bedroom and Rin follows behind, feeling a bit nervous to be alone with him once again. He closes the door behind him, a nervous grin growing on his lips.

__

Haru turns to face Rin, taking both his hands in his. 

__

“Private enough?” 

__

“Heh, yeah much better.” 

__

Rin pauses before moving in closer, removing his hands from Haru’s grip and placing them on his waist. 

__

“Nnng...Haru...come ‘ere.” He pulls him close, flush against his body.

__

“Rin, your costume,” Haru says as he looks down, worried his make-up will rub off on his police costume.

__

“Aarrgghh…I gotta take this off, is that ok? This’ll just take a minute”

__

“Yeah just take it off.”

__

Rin takes a few moments to unbutton his shirt and strip off his pants, but he does it quickly and whips the garments off like Haru sometimes does with his clothes before entering a pool. 

__

They both begin to chuckle at Rin’s goofy behavior. Haru starts to pull off his mermaid tail. He backs up and sits on his bed to wiggle the rest of the tail off and flops it off to the side. 

__

They’re both still wearing some kind of undergarments- Rin in boxer briefs and Haru in jammers.

__

_ Of course he’s in jammers. I wouldn’t have it any other way. _

__

Haru jumps back up to standing position and tilts his head to the side flashing Rin a cute little smile.

__

_ Here little fishy fish… _

__

Rin bites his bottom lip and grabs him, pulling him into his chest. His heart pounds wildly and his cheeks feel red hot but he embraces Haru with everything he’s got. 

__

_ I’ve wanted this for years… _

__

Rin squeezes Haru against him, moving his hands slowly over his back and sometimes into his hair. He pulls him even tighter and backs his head away slightly to kiss his cheek. 

__

“Mmm Haru…” He inhales his scent, his nose next to Haru’s ear just after he kissed his cheek. 

__

Haru’s body once again is squeezed by Rin and he lets out a small sound in response, loving the way Rin holds him tightly against him like he’s waited years for this. 

__

Because that’s what it’s been. 

__

And with that thought, Haru hugs Rin back, pulling him back towards his bed. 

__

“Let’s lay down.” He pulls his head back away from Rin, eyelids heavy with exhaustion from a late night. He reaches to turn the light out.

__

They eventually lay down, pulling covers over them and hold each other close- interlacing arms and legs as they settle down for sleep. 

__

Sure they could’ve stayed up and made out like teenagers do- but they were both depleted of energy from the days’ activities. At least their heads were exhausted for the most part. Eyes heavy, lips parted from tension...brows lazy from nervousness.

__

Rin’s hand was gently tracing fingers along Haru’s hair. 

__

“Haru?” 

__

“Mn?”

__

Their eyes were closed and it was mostly quiet except for a few sounds coming from the party. 

__

“Happy New Year.” He squeezes Haru close and gently presses his lips against his forehead.

__

Haru lazily tilts his head up, catching a glimpse of Rin’s eyes by the moonlight filtering into his room.

__

He moves up to his face, pressing his lips against Rin’s as he holds him tighter.

__

He kisses him gently a few more times before moving his head back at a good enough distance to see his eyes clearly.

__

“Happy New Year, Rin.”

__

Rin traces the side of Haru’s face and they gaze into each other’s eyes for a brief moment before Haru nuzzles his head into Rins chest, gripping his back in one last embrace before surrendering to the heavy sleepiness that overtakes his body.

__

_ Yeah… _

__

_ Best year ever, already. _

__

  
  
  
  


__

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The song I had in mind while Rin dances is inspired by “Angel” by Gavin Friday. You know, that dreamy song in the Romeo and Juliet movie (the remake with Leo and Claire) that plays during the first scene of the....costume party....
> 
> *gasp!* I did not plan that at all! It’s so good though- it’s pretty just how Nagisa says, and has that bass Rin loves. ❤️


	2. Fanart by me!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> My first digital illustration inspired by my fanfic! I'm so happy with how it turned out. I really wanted to get the feel of them wearing costumes and had to figure out a way to make a wearable mermaid tail for Haru. Such a challenge and a labor of love!


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